Nominees Announced for 2020 IBMA Awards

Nominees have been named in 17 categories for the 2020 IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards. On June 26, the International Bluegrass Music Association also announced the 2020 inductees into the Bluegrass Music Hall Of Fame and a number of Distinguished Achievement Awards recipients. [To continue reading this article and to see the complete list of nominees, click on the headline.]

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DelFest Hosts Free Virtual Festival Over Memorial Day Weekend

DelFest will stream performances from previous editions of the festival launched by Del McCoury, an acclaimed bluegrass musician, and members of his extended family, May 21-May 24, 2020 -- the originally scheduled festival weekend. Called DelFest At Home and celebrating musical highlights from DelFests past that have taken place in western Maryland for more than a decade, the free online event will showcase the festival’s namesake and his family, along with other notable bluegrass artists and jam bands. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

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Bluegrass Now! Airs on PBS Television Stations

Bluegrass Now!, a television special featuring a wide array of the musical genre’s leading performing artists, will begin airing on PBS stations across the U.S. on Saturday, February 29. Fittingly, it was filmed during a concert on December 19, 2019 at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum’s Woodward Theatre in Owensboro, Kentucky -- near the home of Bill Monroe, the "Father of Bluegrass Music." [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

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Folk DJ Radio Airplay Charts – January 2020

Treat A Stranger Right by Frank & Allie Lee, a harmony-driven old time and folk music duo, was the top album and featured six of the 25 most-played songs on folk radio during January 2020. Topping the monthly songs chart was “Hello Stanger” by teenage bluegrass artist Eliza Meyer. The month’s most-played artist was David Olney, a revered folk and Americana singer-songwriter who died last month. So say charts compiled by Folk Alliance International based on radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in folk-based music on the radio. [The monthly charts are posted here with permission. To view them, click on the headline.]

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SPBGMA Presents its 2020 Bluegrass Music Awards

Carolina Blue was the top winner in the 46th annual Bluegrass Music Awards presented by The Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA) at the Sheraton Music City Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee on Sunday, February 2, 2020. Winners in 19 categories were honored during an awards show that capped the nonprofit organization’s 37th national convention. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

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Official Showcase Artists Sought for IBMA Bluegrass Ramble

February 29 is the deadline for artists to submit online applications for Official Showcases during the IBMA Bluegrass Ramble and IBMA Business Conference that are part of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s annual five-day World of Bluegrass, September 29 – October 3, 2020. Considered the genre’s annual industry gathering and family reunion, World of Bluegrass takes place in Raleigh, North Carolina for an eighth consecutive year. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

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2019 International Bluegrass Music Awards Presented

The coveted Entertainer of the Year Award, the top honor in the 30th Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards – presented Sept. 26, 2019 at Raleigh, North Carolina’s Duke Energy Center for the Arts – went to Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers, a five-member band that also serves as hosts of the Southern Ohio Indoor Music Festivals that are held twice annually. [To continue reading this article -- including the complete list of award winners -- click on the headline.]

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2019 Grammy Award Winners Named in American Roots Music Field

Brandi Carlile was the big winner in the American Roots Music Field during the 61st annual Grammy Awards presented by the Recording Academy, February 10, 2019, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. [To continue reading this article and see the list of winners in the American Roots Music Field, click on the headline.]

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2018 International Bluegrass Music Awards Presented

Entertainer of the Year, the top honor in the 29th Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards – presented Sept. 27 at Raleigh, North Carolina’s Duke Energy Center for the Arts – went to the Tar Heel State’s own Balsam Range. The five-member acoustic ensemble previously won this award in 2014. Balsam Range’s Buddy Melton was voted 2018 IBMA Male Vocalist of the Year, while Tim Surrett was named Bass Player of the Year. [To continue reading this article – including a listing of all the 2018 award-winners – click on the headline.]

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Top Albums & Songs – June 2018 (FOLKDJ-L)

Bluegrass group David Davis and the Warrior River Boys had the top album (Didn’t He Ramble: Songs of Charlie Poole) and three of the ten most-played songs on folk radio during June 2018, while singer-songwriter Tret Fure had the month’s top song ("Lessons From Home Plate"). So say charts compiled from radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in all folk-based music on the radio. [The monthly top albums and songs charts are posted on AcousticMusicScene.com, with permission. To view them, click on the headline.]

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IBMA Songwriter Showcase Applications Sought

Up to 10 songwriters (or songwriting teams) will be invited to perform one original bluegrass song each for an audience of artists, producers and other industry professionals during a Songwriter Showcase at this year’s World of Bluegrass in Raleigh, North Carolina, hosted by the International Bluegrass Music Association. The online application period for the IBMA Songwriter Showcase -- slated for Thursday, Sept. 27, 2018 -- extends through March 31. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

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SPBGMA Presents Bluegrass Music Awards

The Farm Hands were the top winners in the 44th Annual Bluegrass Music Awards presented by The Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA) at the Sheraton Music City Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee on Sunday, February 4, 2018. Winners in 19 categories were honored during an awards show that capped the nonprofit organization’s 35th national convention. [To continue reading this article and see the complete list of winners, click on the headline.]

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